Making different types of Pithe (seasonal homemade Bengali sweets) during winter is a cherished ritual in every Bengali household. The key ingredients typically include rice flour, maida (flour), suji (semolina), jaggery, and coconut. Among these pithe, Ranga Alur Puli is one of our favourites, not as well-known as Patishapta, but once you try it, you’ll find yourself wanting more in the future.
My Mashi (maternal aunt) used to make her version of Ranga Alur Puli, and whenever she did, we felt fortunate to get a taste. Ranga Alu is the Bengali name for sweet potatoes. The filling consists of soft coconut blended with flavourful date palm jaggery, which is then enveloped in shells made from sweet potatoes. After frying them to a deep golden color and soaking them in jaggery syrup, the result is so delicious that it’s hard to resist.
While the recipe may seem a bit lengthy, the end result is always rewarding. Imagine how your mother and aunts would prepare this for you, and now it’s your turn to carry on the tradition in your own kitchen. I hope you’ll try making Ranga Alur Puli during this season when the best ingredients are readily available. If you do try the recipe, please share your experience with me! 🙂
Ranga Alur Puli / Fried Sweet Potato Dumplings in Jaggery syrup
Ranga Alur Puli Pithe (seasonal homemade Bengali sweets) is made of Sweet Potatoes with a tasty coconut-jaggery filling inside. Soaked in seasonal Date Palm Jaggery syrup, this is typically addictive on every spoonful.
Ingredients
For Shell
- 2 medium-sized/300g approx- Sweet Potatoes / Ranga Alu
- ¼ cup- Rice flour
- 1/3 cup- All-purpose flour/Maida (read note)
For Filling
- 1 medium-sized- Coconut (grated)
- Date Palm Jaggery/Patali Gur- Date Palm Jaggery / Patali Gur (Adjust as per your desire for sweetness)
- ¼ cup- Water
For Jaggery syrup
- 1 cup- Date Palm Jaggery/Patali Gur (read note)
- 2 cups- Water
For Frying
- Vegetable oil (as required)
Instructions
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Boil the sweet potatoes, peel, mash well and keep aside.
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For the filling break solid jaggery coarsely into pieces. Now In a Deep frying pan (nonstick preferably) add the jaggery and water, keep stirring over low heat until the jaggery melts completely and a thick mixture forms. Add some more water if required, so that the jaggery doesn’t burn.
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Add grated coconut into the thickened jaggery mixture, stir well and keep cooking over low heat until a soft mixture forms. Remove from the heat and keep aside.
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Add maida and rice flour to the mashed potatoes, knead well. If the dough becomes sticky, you can add a little more maida at this stage. Keep kneading until you get a soft, lump-free dough. Care should be taken not to knead firm dough, otherwise, the outer shells of Puli will not soak the syrup well later on and they might taste chewy.
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Take a lemon-sized ball from the dough, pat the ball to a small round by using your plums.
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Add 1 tbsp of the coconut filling, and close the rounds to oblong shape Puli. Do this one at a time for each ball. Seal the Puli properly, so that the filling doesn’t get spill from inside at the time of frying.
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Heat 1 cup of vegetable oil in a deep frying pan/kadai. Start frying the Pulis over medium heat until golden in colour. Do not overcrowd the kadai, fry 2-3 Pulis at a time, and flip them gently.
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In-between frying the Pulis start making the jaggery syrup (read note). For the syrup break solid jaggery coarsely into pieces. Add water and jaggery pieces to the pan, simmer over low-medium heat until there is no visible lump from the jaggery, remove from the heat.
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Transfer the Pulis to the warm syrup and leave them soaking in the syrup minimum for 2 hours before serving.
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Store Ranga Alur Puli in an airtight container and keep refrigerated, consume within a week. You can reheat this before serving, they taste best while warm.
Recipe Notes
- If you can source seasonal liquid Date Palm Jaggery which is available during the winter, then you don’t need to make the jaggery syrup for this recipe.
- Heat the liquid Date Palm Jaggery until warm, and transfer the Pulis for soaking into it. This is the best version of Ranga Alur Puli you could ever think of.
- If you want to make this recipe Gluten-free, replace Maida with Gluten-free flour.
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